Women Workers: Here Are Tools to Get the Pay You Deserve

It pays to be a white man—literally. Here’s what women make, on average, compared to white men—for the same job.

Women of retirement age are also facing significant inequity issues. Statistically, women live longer than men—which means they’ll need more savings in general to support themselves, but also to afford health care and basic assistance as they age. Even so, white men over age 65 have an annual income of $44,200—while white women bring in about $23,000, Black women about $21,900, and Latina women $14,800.

Looking for ways to end this inequity?

Normalize talking about pay.
Your employer cannot prevent you from talking about your wages or working conditions—even if they have a policy about it. Just don’t use work equipment (like computers or a company phone) to do it. Check the National Labor Relations Board website if you have questions.

Research and ask for what you deserve. Here are resources that can help:

• Know-your-worth tools: Glassdoor‘s Know Your Worth tool, Career Contessa’s The Salary Project, Salary.com’s Salary Tool, and Payscale’s Salary Range Tool and For Individuals page
• Tips for wage and salary negotiations from the National Committee on Pay Equity
• List of illegal questions in interviews, and how to handle them
• How to answer questions about salary in a job interview from Career Contessa, and their roundup of Everything You Need to Know About Salary, Negotiation, and Budgeting
• Reports on the Gender Pay Gap and the Motherhood Penalty from the American Association of University Women (AAUW), which works on behalf of all women and families
• The New York Times’ The Working Woman’s Handbook, their Guide to Salary Negotiation for women, and How to Ask for a Raise Without Alienating Your Boss
• Find employers trying to close the wage gap and provide a better workplace for all using the InHerSight search tool.
• Stop apologizing. Research shows that women who act agreeable are paid less.

Activate.

• Get the Equal Pay Day Kit, which includes discussion guides, clubs you can join, letter templates, and equity action plans.
• Become a Two Minute Activist or learn how to organize advocacy meetings with kits from the AAUW

If you’re an employer or manager:

• Look sharp: Two-thirds of workers say they’d be willing to switch jobs in favor of an organization that offers more transparent pay practices.
• Perform an audit to find out if you’re as fair as you think.
• Test your implicit bias.
• Make a plan that will result in pay transparency. (It’s good for almost everyone.)
• Read the 2023 Compensation Best Practices report from Payscale, and their Pay Transparency Solution.